The College Fix

Four men missed the victim, who was not injured

University of California, Los Angeles police are investigating an “assault” after four men allegedly threw wads of paper and yelled a “homophobic slur” at a pedestrian in an off-campus incident.

“On 12/24/24, at approximately 6:00PM, the victim was walking westbound on the north sidewalk of Weyburn Avenue as a black convertible with four occupants drove up next to the victim,” a UCLA Police Department crime alert reads, calling it an “assault.”

“One of the occupants yelled a homophobic slur, and another occupant threw wads of paper at the victim,” it reads. The victim, who is a UCLA student, “was not struck” by the paper.

The suspects are four “White or Middle Eastern males” in their “early 20s.” The police did not say what the slur was, and the incident is “currently under investigation” as a “hate crime.”

According to the Los Angeles Times, “hate crimes” such as this are on the rise.

“The 1,350 hate crimes in 2023 — the highest number since the county started tallying them in 1980 — were fueled by an increase in crimes targeting LGBTQ+, Jewish and Black people,” the LA Times reported.

But at least 21 campus hate-crime hoaxes were uncovered this year, involving alleged incidents of racism or bigotry that were later revealed to be fabricated or misinterpreted, The College Fix reported.

For example, at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, racist notes turned out to be a hoax. Additionally, at Illinois State University, an alleged anti-gay “hate crime” lacked sufficient evidence, with the supposed victim changing his story multiple times.

While UCLA police probe this incident of wads of paper being thrown, and missing their target, the university faces allegations of discrimination from its Jewish and pro-Israel students.

Last month, UCLA faced criticism for its “chaotic” response to this year’s anti-Israel protests.

Watchdog group 21st Century Policing Solutions suggested the school make “long-term,” “fundamental, structural changes” after months of disruptive anti-Israel protests wreaked havoc on campus, with some Jewish students and professors saying they were blocked from traveling on certain parts of campus.

The school is also facing a lawsuit filed by a conservative student group accusing it of blocking a pro-Israel speaker’s speech through an administrative heckler’s veto.

MORE: UCLA stays silent on lawsuit accusing it of suppressing pro-Israel speech

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